Aviva PLC Trims Holdings in Acuity Brands, Inc. (NYSE:AYI)

Aviva PLC lowered its holdings in Acuity Brands, Inc. (NYSE:AYI – Get Rating) by 40.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 5,623 shares of the electronics maker’s stock after selling 3,898 shares during the period. Aviva PLC’s holdings in Acuity Brands were worth $931,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Ellevest Inc. lifted its stake in Acuity Brands by 52.7% in the third quarter. Ellevest Inc. now owns 197 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the period. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Acuity Brands by 121.2% in the 4th quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 365 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Acuity Brands in the 4th quarter worth $73,000. Zions Bancorporation N.A. lifted its position in shares of Acuity Brands by 2,926.7% in the 1st quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 454 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $86,000 after purchasing an additional 439 shares during the period. Finally, Gladius Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Acuity Brands during the 4th quarter valued at about $87,000. 93.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Acuity Brands news, Director Laura O’shaughnessy purchased 632 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $158.05 per share, with a total value of $99,887.60. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,111 shares in the company, valued at approximately $333,643.55. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on AYI. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of Acuity Brands from $201.00 to $173.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 5th. UBS Group dropped their price target on Acuity Brands from $180.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 5th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Acuity Brands from $192.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 5th. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $210.00 price objective on shares of Acuity Brands in a research report on Tuesday, April 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Acuity Brands from $193.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Acuity Brands presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $191.88.

Acuity Brands Price Performance

AYI opened at $159.17 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $5.06 billion, a PE ratio of 13.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.57. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $165.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $176.95. Acuity Brands, Inc. has a 1 year low of $142.71 and a 1 year high of $202.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 2.34 and a quick ratio of 1.61.

Acuity Brands (NYSE:AYI – Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 4th. The electronics maker reported $2.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.51. Acuity Brands had a net margin of 9.22% and a return on equity of 22.20%. The business had revenue of $943.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $959.99 million. Sell-side analysts predict that Acuity Brands, Inc. will post 12.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Acuity Brands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 17th were issued a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.33%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 14th. Acuity Brands’s payout ratio is 4.56%.

About Acuity Brands

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Acuity Brands, Inc operates as an industrial technology company, which engages in the provision of lighting and building management solutions and services. It operates through the Acuity Brands Lighting and Lighting Controls and Intelligent Spaces Group segments. The company was founded in 2001 and is headquartered in Atlanta, GA.